CleanLife helps jawans keep their daily hygiene

Founded in February 2016, the startup got infrastructural support and access to faculty for technical and advisory support, and research talent pool from IIT Delhi.Vishal Dutta | ET Bureau | September 15, 2017, 08:51 IST

The Indian Army will soon move on to the ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’, one of the Central government’s flagship project. But this ‘Swachh Bharat Mission’ is slightly different as the Army is preparing for personal hygiene for their combat forces posted in operational areas, where taking a bath daily is a challenge either due to operational conditions or environmental reasons.

In July, the Indian Army chose an 18-month-old startup CleanLife, founded by Puneet Gupta, an IIM Calcutta alumnus. The startup makes waterless body hygiene products such as shampoo and body bath solutions, which can remove dirt, dust, grease, odour and oil from the skin and head while moisturising the skin and conditioning hair. The waterless product has to be massaged but leaves no residue after it has been wiped off with a clean towel.

“The feedback for waterless products is positive and hence we have placed an order. The products aided soldiers to maintain optimum levels of hygiene under operational conditions without using water and hence it is a valuable product to us,” said an officer requesting anonymity. The Army has done extensive trials to establish the products utility and the potential to create an impact in the soldiers’ daily lives was thoroughly evaluated. The product will be used only by one unit in the Army at present. An email query sent to the Ministry of Defence didn’t elicit any response till the time of press. Regarding the supply deal that the startup has stuck with the Army, Gupta said,

“Usually, the Army approaches the DRDO for solutions, but in its absence, it can procure from outside.” Founded in February 2016, the startup got infrastructural support and access to faculty for technical and advisory support, and research talent pool from IIT Delhi, in lieu of 5% equity in the company. “Considering the global concerns and discussion around water crisis, it is clear that water as a resource will be much sought after.

The potential for the Indian market under target segments of armed forces, hospitals, home healthcare, railways and adventure excursions has been evaluated to be to the tune of Rs 5,000 crore in the B2B (Business-to-Business) segment. The potential for head and body care in the B2C (Business-to-Consumer) segment is immense for the Indian subcontinent and globally as well,” said Dr Vijay Chariar, director, IIT Delhi. The startup has applied for patents and is currently working on antimosquito waterless shampoo and body bath, where it can help keep mosquitoes away for a span of 24-36 hours.

“We are also working on a waterless toothpaste, which is a safe to swallow formula and helps keep dental hygiene without the use of water,” Gupta said. The company says these products provide accessible hygiene in areas where water or hygienic facilities is are scarce for soldiers, including those with extreme weather conditions such as Siachen, Dras, Sino-Indian border (Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim) and India-Pakistan border (Rajasthan).

The product can also find use in areas where soldiers are deployed far away from settlements such as Andaman & Nicobar.